Fallen
by Forever Fyre
Summary: Although Mai decides to stay Azula's friend, she has a few conditions. When Azula makes a promise she can't keep, things instantly take a turn for the worst. Now, the Aang Gang must decide which is worse; leaving the Princess to die, or manipulating her to do exactly as they say. My entry for InspiredByFyre! Week 2012. Warning: Violence ahead. You been warned.
1. Prologue

**Author's Note: Hey, people! This is my entry for InspiredByFyre! Week 2012. The week begins tomorrow, but this is a Prologue, so I'm required to post it today to to somebody's stupid rules...**_**  
*That was you.*  
**_**Ohhhhh yeah. Anyways, this story WILL BE VIOLENT. I could probably be rated T for violence, but believe me when I say Violence is it. Nothing else. Well, maybe a Kiss. Okay, Violence and a Kiss.**_**  
*Are you done yet?*  
**_**No. Anyways, I can't wait for my week to begin tomorrow! So without further ado, I present to you...**

**Prologue: What if Mai and Ty Lee Stayed with Azula?**

"_Leave us alone."_

As the guards released her shoulders, the assassin took a deep breath to steady herself. Her golden eyes locked on a small crack on the ground, trying to ignore her old friend's murderous glare. She softly bit the inside of her lip, tilting her head up ever so slightly and making eye contact with the Princess in front of her.

The Princess's eyes narrowed sharply, cutting clean through the tension in the air and causing the pit in Mai's stomach to swell up into her chest. Every breath hurt, and she felt as if her lungs were full of rocks.

"I never expected this from you," Azula hissed, her eyebrows pushed deep into the bridge of her nose. Mai felt her own eyes narrow softly as her old friend continued to speak. "The thing I don't understand is; why?"

Mai saw Ty Lee out of the corner of her eye. The young acrobat had her hands clamped tightly in front of her face. Her knuckles were white from pressing her hands together so hard, and the young woman's eyes were constantly moving back and forth between her two best friends.

Mai was hardly paying attention when Azula's head tilted up. "Why would you do it?" She asked, her eyes softening. "You know the consequences," Azula said, catching herself and narrowing her eyes once more.

The moment of silence threatened to make Mai's knees collapse. She broke it by muttering, "I guess you just don't know people as well as you think you do." She couldn't believe the words slipped out of her mouth, but there they were, hanging in the air. "You miscalculated," Mai continued. "I love Zuko more than I fear you."

That sent Azula off of her edge. "No, you miscalculated! You should have feared me more!" She screamed. Mai saw Azula's fingers flinch and automatically reacted. As Azula pulled her fingers together, ready to make fire or lightning at any given moment, Mai pulled out one of her knives and held it in her hand, ready to strike.

The glint from the knife sent Ty Lee to life. She jumped forward, hitting Azula in the shoulder, then in the back. As Azula fell to the ground, Ty lee saw the look on Mai's face and realized she wasn't done yet.

The young acrobat's feet hardly hit the ground as she rushed to Mai. Mai most definitely wasn't expecting it, but before she knew it, she was on the ground, as well. Ty Lee stood over both of her friends, trying not to make eye contact with either of them. Azula's eyes were narrowed into the hardest glare the acrobat had ever seen. Mai's eyes, however, were tangled in pure shock, unable to believe that her best friend had just sent her falling to the ground.

"You fool!" Azula hissed as a small mob of guards rushed over to the three teens. Ty Lee took a small step back as the guards made their way over to her, grabbing her and pinning her arms behind her back. Several of the other guards ran over to Azula and Mai, holding them up to where they could both look at Ty Lee.

Ty Lee looked over at Azula – her best friend – and bit the inside of her lip. "I'm sorry, Azula, but I couldn't have my best friends killing each other." Ty Lee's voice was much rougher than she had expected it to be. For the overwhelming amount of fear she felt, it was surprisingly blunt.

Azula narrowed her eyes at this. It wasn't like Ty Lee to be so snappy about anything, and especially not to Azula.

"She's right, Azula," Mai said, causing Azula's attention to snap over to her quickly. Her tone was a tad softer than usual; Azula figured she was a bit afraid.

Ty Lee's lips flinched up into a soft smile. "Please. You guys are friends! You shouldn't be fighting over something like this." She paused, looking down at her feet for a moment. "I'm sorry I attacked you both, but if you guys ever hurt each other and I was just sitting by watching..." She trailed off with a soft sigh.

Azula shut her eyes for a moment, before her train of thought was interrupted by one of the guards' voice. "Princess, your airship has been stolen!" he announced, causing the attention of all three girls to shoot over to him.

"What?" She hissed, narrowing her eyes sharply. "Send for another one immediately!" she shouted. The guard bowed softly, before turning to send a messenger hawk. Azula sighed. "Now, if you would be so kind, Ty Lee, to give me back feeling in my arms, then the three of us can get out of this steam-hole."

**O**

"Mai?"

The teen didn't flinch at the mention of her name. Her eyes were locked on the near-full moon, shining directly into her face. She took a deep breath, before softly saying, "Yes, Princess?"

There was a short pause. "You're still mad at me."

Mai bit her lip softly, pulling herself up from hunching onto the sill of the window. "No, I'm not," Mai said, her eyes not moving from staring at the moon. "I'm just..." Mai sighed, slowly turning around. "Look, Azula; you're my friend - or at least, I used to think you were - but you're taking advantage of me and Ty Lee, just like you always have."

Azula's eyebrows curved into an upside-down-'V'. "What do you mean?" She asked, shifting the weight on her feet.

"You know exactly what I mean, Azula." Mai's voice was colder than usual. "Ever since we were kids, you've treated Ty Lee, Me, and everyone you've ever met like your servants. You attack us, threaten us, manipulate us, and yell at us until we do exactly what you want us to do, and I'm sick and tired of it." Mai's voice was rising to a shout. "Look, I know you have some childhood issues, but that doesn't give you the right to treat people like they're garbage. I've put up with so much of you because you're my friend, but when you make me attack my boyfriend, that's taking it too far!"

The Princess stood there, staring with wide eyes at her normally rather emotionless friend. She sighed softly, moving over to Mai's bed and sitting down, placing her head in her hands. Mai looked at her friend for a long hard moment before sitting down on the window sill. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to yell at you."

"It doesn't matter," Azula said softly. Her voice was breaking, so Mai could easily tell she had hurt her friend's feelings.

Mai stood up slowly, making her way over to Azula. "No, it does matter. I got mad and did the exact same thing I just accused you of, and I'm sorry."

Azula sat still for a moment, before looking over at Mai slowly. "Me, too."

The older of the two sat down next to her friend. "I still want to be your friend, Azula. I really do. But for that to happen, I'm going to need you to promise me something," Mai said, her voice ending just louder than a whisper.

"What?"

Mai took a deep breath, looking down for a moment, before glancing back up to make eye contact with Azula. "I want you to promise me that no matter what happens, no matter how mad you get or how bad the situation is, I want you to promise me that you will never make me fight Zuko ever again. _And_ that you won't hurt him." Mai's voice was sharper than her knives. She saw Azula shift uncomfortably, so she decided to add, "Unless he tries to break up with me again. Then you can tear him limb from limb for all I care." Her voice ended in her normal bored tone, and Azula smiled. "Promise?"

Azula looked at her for a long hard moment, before softly muttering, "Promise."


	2. Chapter One

**Author's Note: Here we are; the first day of the second Annual InspiredByFyre! Week. I must say I was amazed by the response I got to my fic, alone, and I can't wait to see the response to all the others. Thank you to everyone who reviewed, and an extra Thank You to everyone who will do something for IBF! Week.  
Also, if any of the characters seem out of character in this chapter, please trust me. You have no idea how many showers I've spent planning out every detail to where it all makes sense, so if there's anything absolutely extreme, let me know. If not, wait and see what I have in store :)  
Now, I bring to you...**

**Chapter One: What if Azula Kept Falling in 'The Southern Raiders'?**

Ty Lee looked out the large warm window in her room. She sighed, watching the clouds move by as the large airship accelerated.

The young acrobat pursed her lips, before turning to face her mirror. The teen tugged on her braid, groaning as a few strands of hair fell out. She shook her head softly, before grabbing a small jug of water from her countertop, throwing the liquid onto her face to wake herself.

It was incredibly early. Azula had insisted on that. She had said that it was the only way to catch the Avatar by surprise. Mai wasn't very happy about going, but after Azula had promised that Zuko wouldn't get hurt, Mai had reluctantly agreed.

For some reason, Ty Lee didn't believe her.

As an announcement came over the loudspeaker declaring that they were arriving at their destination, Ty Lee opened her door and stepped out into the hallway, only to be met by Mai, who was fiddling with a knife a few feet down the hallway. Ty Lee could tell she was anxious by the way she was constantly moving back and forth on her feet. Ty Lee sighed, walking over to her friend slowly.

Mai looked up with wide eyes, as if she hadn't noticed Ty Lee, and gave off a soft sigh, slowly putting her knife back into her pocket. Ty Lee frowned as Azula entered the hallway, Mai instantly turning to stare at her. The acrobat really wasn't sure what her friend would do as the Princess approached, but Azula didn't seem worried.

"Alright, girls. You can stay down here, but it's gonna get rickety," the Princess said, crossing her arms over her chest.

Mai narrowed her eyes slightly. "Why?" she asked, raising one eyebrow at her friend. Azula bit the inside of her lip for a moment, although the masked expression on her face didn't flinch.

"With all of these airships so close together, they're bound to hit up against each other. And trust me, even the slightest bump seems to cause the entire inside to have an earthquake," Azula said with a slight shrug, her voice giving away no signs of lying.

Although Ty Lee could tell she was.

Mai fiddled with her knife again as Azula began to trail off. As soon as she was out of listening range, Mai looked over at Ty Lee. "She's lying. I want to go watch what's going on out there," the older said, looking in the direction the Princess had disappeared to, just to make sure she wasn't still there.

"Are you sure?" Ty Lee asked.

Mai nodded stiffly, turning to grab a small, hand-held telescope from a shelf on the wall. The older of the two grabbed her friend's hand, pulling her through the hallways. They waited until the Airship was still, when suddenly, the entire airship began to rock.

"Are we going down?" Ty Lee screamed, finding the nearest window and instantly looking out.

Mai rushed to the window as well, shaking her head. "No...look!" she exclaimed, pointing down at the Air Temple. A small metal object glinted in the sun as it was launched towards the temple, exploding upon contact.

Ty Lee gasped as the Airship began to rock again. "What's going on?" Ty Lee yelled, trying to keep from sliding over.

Mai was silent, watching as there was a sudden burst of blue fire flying towards the temple. It was counterattacked by a burst of orange flames, which seemed to be moving toward the top of the airship. The assassin stared as a burst of blue light moved in that direction.

"That doesn't look like not hurting him..." Mai hissed through clenched teeth. Ty Lee looked over at her for a moment, before Mai grabbed her friend again and began to run. "Come on!" she yelled, Ty Lee running to keep up with Mai's quick pace.

The two were now outside, they instantly grabbed onto the rails of the catwalk, Ty Lee nearly wrapping her whole body around it from fear of falling off due to the fact that Mai believed they didn't need harnesses. Mai pulled out the telescope as the Avatar's Bison began to fly around, a shield of rocks over the creature's face. A few bursts of blue fire blew the rocks off, but Mai instantly became distracted by another airship that began to float upwards.

"That's Zuko!" Mai exclaimed, focusing the telescope on him.

Ty Lee began to wave happily. "Hi, Zuko!" She yelled. Mai punched her in the arm. Ty Lee pouted her bottom lip as she rubbed her arm, softly muttering, "Ow," as Mai continued to watch blasts of fire flying above their heads.

Since the fighting was happening directly above them, all the two could do was watch little licks of flame dance around. Mai somewhat considered going up there, however she realized doing that could make things worse. Azula might use her as a way to distract Zuko and attack him. Mai bit her bottom lip as suddenly, she heard an explosion from above. She instantly grabbed the telescope to try to look, when she saw Zuko falling about twenty feet away from her.

"Zuko!" She yelled, locking her sights on him as he fell. Her mouth was slightly open as she watched her boyfriend plummet, faster and faster every second. Suddenly, Mai noticed another figure falling, spinning around in wild, uncontrollable circles.

Ty Lee pointed to the spinning figure. "And that's Azula!" she exclaimed. Mai turned the telescope to look at her friend, who was currently trying her hardest to steady herself. The Avatar's bison was now flying at max speed toward the two falling figures.

In the air, Zuko felt his hair whip his face and the back of his neck. He could hardly resist against the wind enough to look over and see Azula falling about thirty feet away from him, spinning in dizzying circles. He turned his head in the other direction just in time to see his friends riding on Appa toward him. At the last second, Katara reached up, grabbing him from the air and pulling him down onto the bison.

He considered thanking her, then thought better of it and turned away.

He looked over the edge of Appa's saddle at his sister, still falling and spinning as fast as she could. She was trying to steady herself, but she was just making the situation worse. "She's...not gonna make it," Zuko said softly, just loud enough for everyone on the bison to hear.

The ex-prince could see Azula kick swiftly, sending out a jet of bright blue fire. He couldn't tell what she was trying to do, but two seconds later, she was spinning in much faster vertical circles, her hair now loose and flying around her body.

Her scream sent Zuko to life.

"We have to help her!" He shouted. Aang was already on it, pulling on Appa's reins until the bison turned, flying down towards the princess. She was still spinning at top seed and letting out soft cries due to being tossed around by the wind.

Azula only caught the slightest glimpse of the approaching bison, and because of her dizziness, she wasn't sure where it was coming from or where it was going. She shut her eyes tightly to keep her hair from flapping in them again, when she heard a loud roar.

Time seemed to move in slow motion for a moment. She opened her eyes again, despite the hair obstructing her already disoriented vision. Her right arm was out in front of her when she suddenly felt another hand grabbing it. She blinked, and suddenly Zuko was below her, his hand clasping onto hers tightly.

As time completely froze, Azula made eye contact with him for a second. His gaze showed fear, sadness, shock, and a hint of relief. Azula realized that maybe, just maybe, Zuko was actually worried about her. That he actually cared...

Time went on full force, and Azula let out a squeal as gravity suddenly took effect. Azula was still falling, and then next thing she felt was her forehead making contact with the side of the bison's saddle.

**O**

Mai jumped back from the telescope, letting out a small gasp of horror. "Azula's hurt," she breathed, staring at the bison a few hundred feet away from her.

Ty Lee's eyes widened as her head whipped around to look at Mai, her braid flying in the wind. "What?" She didn't ask; she demanded. Mai put her eye back to the glass for a moment, staring in bewilderment.

Down below, Zuko grabbed both of Azula's hands, pulling her onto Appa's back. Zuko slid his hands up near her shoulders as she reached her own hand to touch her forehead. She hissed softly in pain as Zuko stared at her with wide eyes.

"Are you okay?" he asked quickly, reaching up to push her bangs out of the way. The rest of Team Avatar was all staring at the Princess speechlessly.

The girl gave off the slightest bit of a nod. "Yeah...I'm okay." Zuko could tell she was just repeating what he had said, and she said it so softly and breathlessly Zuko hardly heard her. She moved her hand from her head down to in front of her face, and her eyes locked on the scarlet liquid dripping from her fingers. She groaned in pain, reaching her hand back up slowly in an attempt to wipe the blood from her forehead.

Zuko held on closely to her as Katara scooted over and moved her hands up to touch the firebender's head. Azula hissed sharply, instantly pulling back, her head now buried in Zuko's chest.

On the Airship, Ty Lee was leaning as far over the rail as she could, trying to see what was happening.

"I-It looks like Azula hit the Bison's saddle or something. She's moving a little...but she keeps rubbing her forehead," Mai narrated, not taking her eyes off the scene below through the telescope. "Zuko's holding on to her. I-I think she may have blacked out."

Ty Lee wrapped both of her hands as tightly around the rail as she felt her shoulders fall. "No," she muttered under her breath, feeling her eyes cloud with tears. She felt her chest tighten, and she fought with every part of her not to break down into sobs.

Mai was still staring, mouth slightly agape, at the scene below. She shut her eyes for a moment, before turning around to walk back inside the airship. "We have to get down there to her," Mai said, throwing the telescope aside. "Come on!"

The silence on the Bison was enough to make Zuko scream – which, he considered doing. Azula wasn't moving anymore, her broken head now rested up against Zuko's shoulder. Katara had her hands moving constantly, water moving with them up against the Princess' forehead.

After a moment, Katara sat back. Zuko looked up at her with worried eyes. "How bad is it?" he asked softly.

Katara took a deep breath. "Luckily, she didn't break her neck. How she managed to do that is beyond me, but..." Katara ran a soft finger along Azula's head. "I think she'll be okay if she gets bandaged up," she said softly.

Aang nodded, grabbing Appa's reins. "Yip, Yip!" he said, whipping the reins, which caused the bison to fly upwards.

Sokka pursed his lips softly. "So...what are we gonna do now?" he asked slowly, raising an eyebrow as Zuko pulled Azula's bangs from her face again. The older of the two sighed softly, shrugging his shoulders.

"I guess she'll go back home," he said, shifting Azula slowly. The Princess groaned half-consciously, causing Zuko to cringe. "I don't know if she can get on the airship by herself. One of us will have to go with her."

Suki locked eyes with him. "We'd be arrested. Probably taken back to the Fire Nation and killed. We couldn't risk that," She said, looking at Azula as she shifted slightly.

Sokka looked over at her. "Well what else can we do?" he asked with a shrug. He looked to the side as Appa approached the airship, and his eyes instantly locked on Azula's friends, Mai and Ty Lee. They were standing, holding onto the rails for their lives, on the catwalk closest to the bison.

"Azula!" Ty Lee exclaimed, jumping on Appa as soon as the animal was close enough. Katara jumped back in surprise as Ty Lee instantly rushed over next to Azula.

Mai was a little more patient, waiting until Zuko grabbed her hand to get onto the bison. She looked over at her friend with wide eyes. "What happened?" she asked, looking at the princess' bloody face.

Zuko shook his head. "She hit the side of the saddle, but Katara said she's gonna be okay..." he trailed off as he saw Katara cringe slightly. Zuko narrowed his eyes. "I don't know how well the airship doctor could take care of her until she gets home."

Ty Lee frowned. She turned to look at Katara. "Could you help her?" she asked quickly.

Katara's eyes widened. "I-I think if I really worked on it...I could..." she looked over at Azula for a moment, taking a deep breath. "I think so," she said firmly, looking back at the young acrobat in front of her.

Ty Lee smiled widely. "Really?" she asked excitedly. Katara nodded, forcing a small smile onto her face.

Aang smiled, as well, grabbing firmly onto his pet's reins again. "Where to?" He asked the group, which had now gotten larger by three fire nation teens. Zuko looked up in thought for a moment, before looking back at his friend.

"Ember Island."

_**Wanna see where all of these ideas came from? Check out the Original InspiredByFyre! Fic, Fyre's Guide to Creativity at s/6322746/1/Fyres-Guide-to-Creativity**_


	3. Chapter Two

**Author's Note: Alright, I've said it once, but I'll say it again; Never jump to conclusions with me. No matter how a chapter may end and how certain you are the next chapter's going to be a certain way, it most likely will not be that way. Trust me.  
But...I repeat: If you see any Spelling/Grammar/Extreme OOCness, let me know. I want to make this story the best it can be, and I need YOUR help to do it...for only 19,99,99 a month! :)  
Disclaimer: I still own nothing but the ideas. Speaking of that...**

**Chapter Two: What if Ozai had had some men search Ember Island?**

As the Avatar's Bison's six paws hit the sandy ground, Zuko placed his hand under his sister's head. He lifted her up from Appa's saddle, and she wearily rested her head on his shoulder with a soft 'Mmph'. Zuko sighed, looking over the edge at the ground.

"Should we pitch tents?" Suki asked the first words anyone had said since that morning.

Zuko shook his head slowly. "No...we have a beach house here. It should be big enough for all of us, and there might be some stuff we could use up in the attic," he said, swinging his legs over the side of the saddle and dropping to the ground.

Mai pointed up a large hill to the group's left. "It's up there," she said, jumping from the saddle, as well, and holding out her hand to help Ty Lee down. Ty Lee didn't seem to notice, sliding down Appa's tail instead.

"I sure hope we have some 'stuff' up in the attic, because over the past two weeks, we've somehow managed to grow by five people." Katara grabbed a bag from Appa's back and glanced inside it. "On top of that, we're running out of food." She turned to face her brother with a stern look.

Sokka held up his hands in defense. "Don't look at me! Zuko ate the last of the sea prunes!"

"Sokka, that was your dad. I hate those," Zuko responded from a few feet away.

Katara rolled her eyes, grabbing two backs and slinging them over her shoulders. Aang jumped from Appa's head and held out a hand for her, grabbing her arms and helping her off of the bison's back. "We need to talk about what we're gonna do about Azula."

"I've already thought of that," Zuko said, turning around to face Aang. "There's a basement with a door that locks from the outside. I think there's a bed down there, so we can keep her there until she wakes up. Then we can decide if she's safe to let out of there."

Suki glanced over at Katara, before turning to Zuko with a raised eyebrow. "What do you mean?" she asked, hardly believing Azula could ever be safe.

"Well, if she's weary and drowsy and has no idea what's going on most of the time, I don't think she'd be too much of a threat. However, if she wakes up and is trying to kill us all...we can keep her locked in there for a little while," Zuko said with a shrug.

Katara narrowed her eyes softly. She still didn't trust Zuko completely, and she most definitely did not want to trust his judgment on if Azula was dangerous or not. She was well aware Azula could lie and wiggle her way out of any situation, and she was afraid she was the only one who had her guard up.

After all, the four Fire Nation teenagers they had to put their trust in now were their worst enemies three weeks ago.

No one else seemed to realize that. Sokka and Zuko bickered with each other like they had been best friends for years. Suki didn't seem upset that two of the girls who had put her in jail were sitting right next to her the entire trip. Even Aang instantly insisted on helping Azula, as if he had totally forgotten she had shot him with lightning a few months ago.

"Yeah. That sounds like a great plan, Zuko," she drawled, hoping one of her friends would pick up on the sarcasm. Unfortunately, none of the seemed to, instead all grabbing their stuff off of Appa and following Zuko and Mai up to the house. Katara noted Ty Lee was lagging behind her friends a bit, her arms crossed over her chest and her eyes locked on her feet as if she was nervous.

Katara considered going up to her and reassuring her, saying Azula would be okay. Although if something did happen to Azula, Katara would never forgive herself for saying that to Ty Lee. So, she decided to follow everyone else up to the house silently.

"This place is so pretty!" Suki declared, looking around at everything. Toph, who was standing next to her, shrugged.

"Eh. I've seen better," the blind earthbender said, causing a laugh from Sokka, Suki, and Aang. Mai seemed to not be paying attention to them, standing close to Zuko and looking at Azula as the princess stirred softly in Zuko's arms. She still wasn't fully conscious, but she did shift around and groan every once in a while.

Mai stepped ahead of Zuko to open the door for him. Despite the rust and the loud creak, the door opened with ease, and Zuko slipped inside the pitch-black house. Aang came in behind him, instantly sending little sparks over at all of the torches inside, lighting the living room.

It was beautiful. There was a large sitting area in the living room, a dining room just to the right with a table big enough for all of them, a kitchen that connected to the dining room, and windows all over each wall.

Zuko walked into the living room and laid Azula down on the couch. Aang couldn't tell if he was just resting her there for a while, or if his arms had fallen asleep from carrying her for so long. He guessed that it was a little bit of both as he stretched his arms and insisted on giving them the 'Grand Tour'.

"Most of the bedrooms are up here," Zuko said, leading the group up the stairs. "There's a bunch of them, plus someone could sleep on the couch downstairs. Oh, and over here is..."

Aang stopped listening, instead looking around the living room. He heard Azula let out a soft groan in her sleep, and he turned to look at her. Her head had stopped bleeding a long time ago, but Katara had put a bandage around the wound. She had also insisted that none of them touch her forehead until she could tell how bad the concussion was, and she couldn't tell how bad the concussion was until the swelling went down. Aang had hoped that would be soon. No matter how much pain Azula had caused him, Aang knew that concussions could cause permanent damage. Katara had been able to heal him; He wasn't sure if she could do the same for Azula.

He sighed softly sitting on one of the heavily cushioned seats in the living room. He yawned loudly, before resting his head against the back of the seat. He shut his eyes and let his body relax, slowly falling asleep.

**O**

He felt like he had only been asleep for five minutes – maybe ten, but when he was grabbed and shaken awake, the dark house had beams of light coming from all of the windows, illuminating everything.

"Get up!" Katara shouted. He had hardly noticed she was there. She was standing over him, shaking him rapidly. Her wide eyes instantly told Aang that something was seriously wrong.

He wasn't even totally awake as she grabbed him and pulled him to his feet. "Is Azula okay?" he asked groggily, rubbing his eyes and yawning. Katara pulled him over to the basement door, which scared Aang even more.

"She's fine. She's waking up. We've got bigger problems than that, though," Katara said, unlocking the door and rushing down the stairs, the Avatar trailing behind her by a few steps. Aang noticed all of his friends were in the basement, aside from Sokka, who was nowhere to be seen.

As Aang looked around, he locked eyes with Suki. "What's going on? Where's Sokka?"

"He's okay. He's hiding Appa. He should be here any second. There are Fire Nation soldiers everywhere outside, and they're looking for us," Suki said quickly, looking up at the hard, metal door that was separating them from the soldiers all over the island.

Katara turned to Zuko, and Aang could tell this was the first time she had gotten the news from the fact that she was fuming. "I knew it!" she yelled at him. "We should have never trusted you to find a place to hide!"

"What are you talking about?" Zuko asked. He was sitting next to the asleep Azula, and he was stroking her head softly. She was moving a bit, but her eyes were still closed tight.

Katara glared daggers at him. "Oh, please! You know exactly what I'm talking about! Last night, I asked you how you knew no one would find us here, and today, the entire place is crawling with Fire Nation soldiers!"

"Katara, they're probably searching everywhere. In case you haven't noticed, it's not just the fact that we're wanted in the Fire Nation anymore. The Princess of the Fire Nation is missing!" he yelled, looking at Azula. "They're probably looking everywhere by the Western Air Temple for her!"

Katara crossed her arms over her chest. "And you didn't tell me this last night because...why, exactly?" she asked sharply.

Aang put a hand on her shoulder. "Katara, calm down. Zuko didn't know. This isn't his fault," he said gently.

As a creak came from the heavy metal door, every head in the room turned to face it with wide eyes. Sokka came in, shutting the door tightly behind him. "Toph, can you lock this from this side?" he asked quickly. Toph nodded, running over to Sokka and metalbending the door shut tight.

Sokka turned to the group. "What'd I miss?" he said, looking at Katara's angered expression.

"Your sister hates me, so nothing new," Zuko snapped. Mai smirked over in the corner, watching Azula as she stirred roughly. She pursed her lips, realizing that Azula was probably waking up.

"Hey, guys?" she said, looking over at Azula.

They didn't seem to notice her, as Toph instantly held up a hand telling them all to be quiet. "They're in the house," she whispered, her ear against the door. She rushed down the stairs to join the group huddled in the corner. The room instantly went quiet, except for Ty Lee, who had been the only one that heard Mai.

"Guys?" She said softly, pointing at Azula. They all turned to face her, hissing 'Shhhh!'. Ty Lee pouted softly, glancing over at Mai, who was staring at Azula, as well.

The muttering outside the door got louder and the little noise in the room instantly quieted. Mai and Ty Lee exchanged a glance, before looking up and following the others' gaze to the door. The sound of footsteps was now right outside the door.

"There's no one in the house, sir," a deep voice boomed through the door. Ty Lee instantly cringed, hugging her knees tightly and switching her gaze over to the injured Princess. Azula was groaning softly, rolling over every few seconds.

_This would be the worst time ever for her to wake up._

"The rest of the island seems clean, as well," another voice responded. "And we've checked every inch...except..." The sound of a hand hitting the metal door caused everyone in the room to freeze solid, staring up at it with wide eyes. There was a loud thud, followed by a deep groan. "Rusted shut," he hissed. The footsteps began again, growing softer as they moved away from the door.

There was a long moment of silence, broken by a soft and drowsy voice. "Where am I?"

Sokka turned to face Azula, glaring at her. "Shhhh!" He hissed. Less than three seconds later, every head in the room was suddenly staring at the Princess, who was pulling herself up into a sitting position and rubbing her eyes.

"Azula!" Zuko said as loud as he dared. "You're okay!" he pulled her into a tight hug. The girl instantly pulled back, wiggling her way out of his arms.

She stared at her brother with wide eyes. "How do you know my name?" she asked, her voice showing obvious bewilderment and fear. Ty Lee and Mai's eyes widened, as well, staring at their friend for a long moment. As Azula looked around the room, she uttered one more question that shocked everyone; "Who are you guys?"

_**Wanna see where all of these ideas came from? Check out the Original InspiredByFyre! Fic, Fyre's Guide to Creativity at s/6322746/1/Fyres-Guide-to-Creativity**_


	4. Chapter Three

**Author's Note: Hehe, you all think you know what's gonna happen. How amusing...  
Again, tell me any problems you have, but don't just tell me problems! Tell me what you like, too! I wanna be an author when I get older, so whatever critique I can get is Fantabulistic.  
And I present to you...**

**Chapter Three: How did Zuko and Mai meet?**

Zuko stared at his sister with wide eyes. His heart was beating so hard, he swore everyone in the room could hear it. And why not? No one had said a word since Azula had revealed that she didn't know who any of them were. She was glancing around the room with wide eyes, watching everyone as they stared at her, openmouthed. Their looks terrified her as she looked back and forth between them.

She finally built up the courage to say something. "Sh-Should I remember you?" she asked softly, reaching her hand up to rub her head.

Katara instantly grabbed her hand and held it down, causing Azula to look over at her quickly. Katara sighed, closing her eyes for a second, before looking back up at Azula. "Don't touch your head. You could hurt it worse," she said softly. She didn't know whether or not to believe that Azula really couldn't remember them, but she decided to go along with it.

Azula looked at her for a long hard moment, and Katara could have sworn that under the confusion she saw a bit of recognition and perhaps under that...a hint of hatred. Katara narrowed her eyes slightly as Azula's gaze softened. "Okay," the Princess muttered, pulling her hand away from Katara.

Zuko looked at his sister, his eyes not straying from hers. "You don't remember who we are," he said softly, looking for any sign of lying. Despite Katara's somewhat angered look, he couldn't find one.

"Sorry," she said with a slight shrug. "Who are you?"

Zuko leaned back, throwing his arms up in the air. "I'm Zuko...your brother?" he said. Her unchanged expression instantly told him that she didn't recognize him at all. "You have to remember me!"

"Zuko, calm down," Suki said, coming to sit down next to him on the edge of Azula's bed. "She probably doesn't remember much of anything. This happened to one of the girls one time after she slid down a rocky hill and hit her head. It turned out the only thing she didn't remember was falling. Let me check her out and see how confused she really is, okay?"

Azula narrowed her eyes softly, looking back and forth between her supposed 'brother' and the other girl. "Okay," the Princess said again, leaning back against the wall behind her. Her head was throbbing horribly, so being able to rest it against something instantly made her feel a lot better.

"Alright," Suki said softly, looking up at her friends. "I don't really want to overwhelm her with information, yet, so what do you guys think we should do?"

Zuko looked up in thought for a moment. "For now, let's figure out what all she remembers. After that we can start worrying about filling in the blank spots." He looked over at Azula for a moment, her eyes darting around the room. "I also think we don't all need to be in here when Suki checks Azula's memory. She might already be overwhelmed."

His sister scowled. She didn't like that they were talking about her like she wasn't even there, but they seemed to be wanting to help her, so she bit her tongue and didn't say anything, instead looking over at 'Suki', wondering what her memory test would be like.

As the group began to exit, Katara pushed her way close to Aang. "Are you sure it's a good idea to leave Suki alone with Azula?" she hissed into his ear, glancing up at Zuko for a moment. Zuko didn't notice her, instead putting his arm around Mai's shoulder. Katara rolled her eyes. "Azula might hurt her!"

"Or Suki might hurt Azula. You seem to be forgetting that Azula threw Suki in jail. I think they'd be a pretty even match," Aang responded with a slight shrug. Katara narrowed her eyes, stepping ahead of Aang to warn Sokka.

The sudden thought of Azula and Suki attacking each other caused Aang to cringe and turn around for a second. He overheard Suki as he stepped out the door, "Hello, Azula. My name is Suki, and I'm a friend."

**O**

Mai exhaustedly sat down on the large silky couch in the sitting area. Zuko instantly sat next to her, putting an arm over her shoulder and smiling for the first time in several days. Mai pulled up against him and sighed softly, muttering under her breath, "I'm glad you're okay."

"Of course I'm okay. Why would you think otherwise?" he asked, a hint of surprise lingering in his tone. Mai sat still, closing her eyes for a moment, before looking over her shoulder at Ty Lee, who was sitting right up against the door to the basement. Zuko watched her for a moment, before asking her slowly, "What happened at Boiling Rock?"

Mai shook her head, resting it in her hands. "Ty and I...we told Azula we were tired of listening to every word she said. Azula was furious, and she almost attacked me. Ty Lee stopped her...but..." Mai sighed softly. "I made Azula promise me that she would never make me fight you again, and that she would never hurt you. I should have known she was lying; she always is."

Zuko pursed his lips. "She didn't used to be that way. She used to be the sweetest girl in the world, remember?" Mai nodded stiffly.

"That's how we met. At the Academy, I twisted my ankle trying to do cartwheels with Ty Lee. Azula saw it happen and instantly rushed to go get help. Later, she invited us over and...and then I met you," Mai felt her boyfriend kiss her cheek softly, so she added with a smirk, "And things have gone downhill since then."

Zuko laughed. "Whatever. You were the one always madly in love with me! At all the parties we would have, you would just about bowl over anyone who tried to sit next to me! But, I will admit, I didn't mind it as much as I used to pretend to."

"'Ew, Girls are so icky!'" Mai rolled her eyes as she quoted her boyfriend. "Yeah, I would hope you didn't mind it that much. Especially since after all those parties, you would walk around with me and hold my hand constantly. Remember that time Azula thought our hands were stuck together and she tried to pull them apart for us?"

Zuko smirked. "She didn't try to pull them apart for us...she tried to burn them off for us!" he said, and the two instantly were submerged in laughter. Mai glanced over her shoulder again, and was surprised to see Ty Lee hadn't flinched from her position right outside the door, hugging her knees tightly.

"Hey, Ty? Are you feeling alright?" Mai asked.

Before Ty Lee could answer, the door opened, and every head turned to see Suki walk out of the basement. Aang and Katara were both relieved to see her come out without her head on fire, but Zuko, Mai, and Ty Lee were worried because she didn't come out smiling.

"Alright...I've done every test I can think of on her...and here's what I found out; she remembers herself pretty well, like she knows her name and that she's a firebender...which she also remembers how to do. She can talk to me just fine, so she remembers that. The only problem I found with her is that she can't remember other people," Suki stated.

Zuko raised an eyebrow. "What do you mean?"

"Well, she didn't remember me. I asked her for her most far-back memory, and she said it was waking up in the basement surrounded by us. She doesn't remember her family, or the war, or the fact that she's the Princess of the Fire Nation," Suki said with a slight shrug.

Mai pursed her lips. "So...only her memory's been wiped?" she asked.

As Suki nodded, Katara crossed her arms over her chest. "Well that's a bit convenient." As the group turned to look at her, she tilted her head. "What? It's true! Normally when people hit their head _that _hard, they wouldn't remember how to _firebend_."

"Well, I reminded her she was a firebender," Suki said. "She just remembered how to move a little flame from a torch around. I think she'll be okay if we fill her in on everything. If we do that, she'll be back to normal Azula within a few days."

Sokka shifted uncomfortably. "But...normal Azula is the Azula that's trying to kill us."

Aang scratched his head in thought. "Maybe we should leave out that part," he suggested, looking over at Katara's skeptical expression.

"I think there's a lot of stuff we should leave out," the waterbender said, looking at the floor for a long, hard moment. She then looked up at her friends and shrugged. "Agreed?" she asked, raising an eyebrow.

Zuko sighed softly, before looking up at her and meeting her gaze. "Agreed."

_**Wanna see where all of these ideas came from? Check out the Original InspiredByFyre! Fic, Fyre's Guide to Creativity at s/6322746/1/Fyres-Guide-to-Creativity**_


	5. Chapter Four

**Author's Note: This is where my plot really takes off. This is where the cliché is over. This is where you will all feel sorry for ever doubting me.  
And...beside Katara's OOCness in this chapter, there's a true reason behind it. That will be revealed tomorrow.  
Oh, and the main idea of this chapter will become bigger over the final chapters, as well.  
AND...I used the word 'Whom' in this chapter! Be proud of me! I know the difference between 'Who' and 'Whom'. (Thank you, Sheldon Cooper! (I write all of these chapters while watching Big Bang Theory. Don't judge me))  
ONTO THE CHAPTER!**

**Chapter Four: What if Azula and Zuko were twins?**

Katara watched Azula closely as Zuko showed her around the house. She hadn't shown any sign of breaking character yet, but Katara could have sworn earlier when Azula had walked by her, she had given off the slightest bit of a wicked smirk.

Katara wasn't going to let her get away with it.

Zuko was in on it, too. He constantly insisted that Azula didn't remember any of them. He filled her in only on details of whom they were and where they were. Everything else was apparently a total blur to her. However, last night, Azula had mentioned her father's name was Ozai. She then claimed Zuko had told her.

Katara wasn't going to let either of them get away with it.

"Hey, Katara?" she heard Azula's voice calling. She turned to face the Princess, narrowing her eyes the second she noticed Zuko wasn't there. In Azula's arms were several pots and pans, along with a small wooden box. "Zuko asked me to give these to you," she continued, handing the Kitchen Supplies to Katara. "He said that the box has a lot of old recipes. They look really delicious. I can help you make some of them later, if you want me to," Azula said, tilting her head slightly.

To be honest, she looked incredibly innocent. Her hair was up in a long ponytail, with her signature strands of hair dangling in front of her ears. She no longer had on layers of Armor, instead simply wearing a short sleeved undershirt and a pair of comfortable pants that looked like they had been slept in for several days. The biggest difference to Katara was that Azula no longer wore her crown. They hadn't been able to find it.

But, despite her casual and sweet appearance, she was still a deadly and terrifying firebender who wanted to kill them all.

Katara feigned happiness, taking the kitchen supplies with a smile. "Of course you can help," she said gently. She looked up in thought for a moment, before looking back at the Princess. "So...how much has Zuko told you?"

"About what?" Azula asked, playing with her ponytail like a curious young child. "He's told me a lot of stuff over the past couple of days."

Katara shrugged. "Oh...I don't know...has he told you much about your family?" she asked, still smiling. She tried to act like she genuinely cared about what all Azula knew. As a matter of fact, she did, but not for the reasons she was convincing Azula.

As she walked over to light a fire below the pot, Azula shook her head as she pursed her lips. "Just the fact that he's my brother. Why? Is there something he was supposed to tell me?" she asked, raising an eyebrow. Her eyes showed curiosity, but they seemed to instantly lose that touch of innocence.

Katara bit her lip softly, bending some water into the pot and leaving it to boil. She thought for a moment before she responded, knowing the next words that came out of her mouth would be crucial. "I was just wondering if he...told you about your...dad?" she said, not making eye contact with Azula.

Azula's eyes narrowed incredibly slightly, but she instantly widened them again and stepped over to help Katara cut vegetables. "Nothing. In fact, he's never mentioned either of my parents." She looked up slightly. "I'd like to know about them...but I don't know how to ask him."

"Well, I can understand why he wouldn't tell you about them," Katara scoffed, before acting like it was a mistake and taking a quick breath in. Azula paused from cutting the carrot in front of her and turned to look at Katara.

"What do you know?" she didn't ask; she demanded.

Katara sighed, shaking her head. "It's just...your dad is not the nicest guy on the planet. He kind of hates both of you," she ended it shyly, dipping her head again so she couldn't see Azula's confused expression. "He always has. That's why you both ran away."

"We ran away?" Azula asked skeptically. Katara noted the fact that her tone was much more angered than it was sad or surprised.

The waterbender shrugged softly. "Yeah. It's not exactly the happiest story ever, either." Azula's urged look told Katara to continue her lie. "You two are the kids of the most..._high-up_ man in the Fire Nation," she said, hoping Azula would catch her hints. "But he's very power-obsessed. He'll do anything to win." That part was true. "He even used you two until you were smart enough to realize what he was doing. You ran away and found Mai and Ty Lee, and then you guys ran into us. Our goal is to help take down your father so he can never hurt anyone ever again..." she trailed off on purpose, grabbing a slab of meat and giving half to Azula for her to cut.

"Go on," Azula said, taking the food and cutting it slowly.

Katara tilted her head. "You guys agreed to help us take him down. That was several months ago. Just a few days ago, however, you were practicing your firebending out on a cliff with Zuko, your foot slipped, and you went tumbling. It wasn't that far, but it was far enough for you to hurt your head."

Azula resisted the urge to rub her wound. She glanced down at the knife and angled it to where she could see Katara's reflection. She felt her gaze get hard as she looked at the waterbender, before muttering, "So...the reason I got hurt is...basically because of my dad?" she asked, sliding her pointer finger along the knife blade and pursing her lips.

Katara nodded stiffly. "Just...don't tell Zuko I told you. He hates talking about your dad. But...if he does tell you something...it might not be entirely true. He might make up some story about your dad loving you more than anything else in the world but...trust me."

Azula looked over at her as her shoulders slumped. "I can see why he didn't want to tell me."

Katara put her hands on her hips. "Well...you asked!" she said, raising her eyebrows. "But...if there's anything else you need to know, ask me. Zuko might try to hide some of it from you."

"Thanks," Azula muttered, stepping away from the cutting board. Katara walked over to the half-cut piece of meat and looked over her shoulder to see if Azula could see her. She watched the Fire Nation teen walk up the stairs, and then placed her head in her hands.

Katara had done it. She had turned Azula into a warrior for their side, who believed her evil father needed to die because he hated her. She had convinced Azula to not mention any of Katara's tale to Zuko, so Zuko couldn't tell her the truth. She had destroyed the evil Princess Azula, and turned her into the nice daughter of the most evil man in the world.

And she hated herself for it.

**O**

Azula sat on the edge of her bed, looking around the room. Her eyes rested on a mirror set on a dresser in the corner. The princess got up slowly, stepping over to her reflection and staring at it for a long, hard moment.

_She lied to you._

Azula pressed her lips together until the blood red color faded to an incredibly light pink. She narrowed her eyes, looking at herself. Her eyes went down to her manicure. Chipped, but still painted that regular blood red color. Azula's eyes narrowed, again. Katara had told her she had been here for several months, but that polish was nowhere in the house.

_She lied to you, Azula._

Azula shook her head sharply. She kept having the weirdest flashes every time she wasn't occupied with something or someone. She felt like she had known them for several months, but for some reason, she couldn't believe that she had been their friend for so long.

_She's a liar, Azula!_

Azula slammed her closet door open hard enough to break a couple of the hinges off. She instantly grabbed a small pillow in the closet and screamed into it at the top of her lungs. She grabbed a cloak off the rack, causing the entire shelf above it to fall. She yelped, jumping back, before noticing something that had fallen onto the ground.

She picked up the broken frame, grabbing the sheet of paper it used to hold as it fell out. She peered at the document for a moment, looking at the four faces. There was a young girl – she couldn't have been older than five - who looked a bit like herself. She was sitting cross-legged next to a young boy. Aside from his blemish-free face, he looked exactly like Zuko.

The two adults sitting behind them...she didn't recognize them at all. They looked like a happy couple, sitting with loving arms around the children. Azula flipped over the paper and stared at the writing on the back. _'Happy Birthday, Zuko and Azula! We love you. Love, Mom and Dad.'_

Azula's eyes widened as far as they could go. She pressed her lips together firmly, before folding up the paper and placing it in her pocket.

_She lied to you, Azula. And she'll do it again._

**O**

Azula skipped out of her room, peering over the staircase to see if Zuko was downstairs. The moment she saw he was alone on the couch, she jumped down the stairs and rushed over to him. "Hey, Zuko! Look at what I found in my room!" she said, handing the document to him. He looked at it carefully, a small smile flickering on his face.

"They gave this to us for our fourth birthday," he remembered, looking at every inch. "Our family was so happy back then..." his eyes stopped on himself and Azula, who had their arms around each other and a huge smile on either's face. He felt his smile fade as he remembered that less than a week ago the two had been trying to kill each other. He sighed softly, handing the paper back to her. "I guess a lot has changed since then."

Azula instantly frowned, feeling her whole body droop. "Oh," she muttered. She looked up slightly as Katara walked into the room, smiling. She stood up and brushed herself off. "I'm gonna go see what Suki and Toph are up to," she said quickly, before rushing off outside.

Zuko watched her leave, before turning to Katara. "Does she seem really different to you today?" he asked slowly, watching her run over to Suki with a huge smile on her face.

"How so?" she asked, following his gaze outside.

Zuko shrugged. "Like...a lot more curious about stuff? I mean, all day she's just seemed like she's kind of sad and mad about everything. She doesn't seem like her normal self," he said softly, looking up at Katara.

"Well, didn't we agree we don't really want her to be her normal self?" Katara asked. "I mean, would you rather her be like this, or would you like for her to try to kill us?" she raised an eyebrow at him.

"Maybe so, but I don't want Azula to be so...weird about everything," he said, trying hard to think of the right words.

Katara shook her head. "I don't see it. Are you sure?"

"I'm positive. I can just tell she's incredibly off where she usually is. She's normally calm and relaxed...but now..." He sighed. "I guess I can just tell because I'm her twin. Usually, she's really hard to read. That's why I can't even tell if she's lying. But recently, she's been acting really different."

Katara looked up quickly. "Probably just a side effect of her wound...I didn't know you two were twins!" She declared, trying to change the subject. "I mean, you look exactly alike, but I never really thought about it before." She forced a big smile on her face.

Zuko stood up and walked over to the window. "It's how I can tell there's something seriously wrong. You're probably right, though."

Katara looked down at the floor, feeling guilt instantly flood her and cause her heart to droop. "Yeah. Probably." She turned around and walked up the stairs, quickly rushing to her room and collapsing on her bed.

_What have I done?_

_**Wanna see where all of these ideas came from? Check out the Original InspiredByFyre! Fic, Fyre's Guide to Creativity at s/6322746/1/Fyres-Guide-to-Creativity**_


	6. Chapter Five

**Author's Note: I am late by four minutes. I'm sick; have mercy.  
Anyways, this chapter ends with a cliffhanger. Don't hate me.  
AND, there's more Katara OOCness that isn't really OOC. YAY!  
Also, the idea isn't really implied in this chapter. It was kinda in the last one. SO...we'll pretend it's in this one. And, this chapter is really scary. And disturbing. And Violent. I told you that 'You Been Warned'. You didn't believe me. Shame.  
SOOOO...Responding to an Anon, John: Changing the storyline! It's what I do best. You'll see more of Twin!Zuko in the next few chappy's ;)**

**ONTO THE CREEPINESS!**

**Chapter Five: What if Azula Joined Team Avatar? (Or...something like that :D)**

Katara shut the door to her room silently, feeling her shoulders slump and her vision blur. She collapsed onto her bed, burying her head into one of the fine red silk pillows. Then, despite herself, she felt hot tears rush down her face as she began to sob.

_I did it again._

It had been a little over a week since Katara had fed Azula her false past. That day, she had promised herself she wouldn't lie to Azula again. She could dodge the truth, but she wasn't allowed to tell Azula anymore lies.

She had broken that promise the very next day, when Azula had asked a question about her father. Instead of dodging the question or telling Azula the truth, Katara had piled another lie onto her story. The next day, the same situation had happened.

The waterbender shut her eyes, pressing her face deep into the cool pillow. She felt her chest heave as she imagined being in Azula's shoes. It would be horrible to not know about yourself, instead knowing lies and stories that were created just to change you.

On the other hand, what if Azula was lying? What if she still remembered everything, and was playing them so she could defeat them later? What if she was still the evil and manipulative Princess Azula?

_Evil and Manipulative...I'm not better than that._

She pulled herself up and sighed, her attention suddenly shooting behind her as she heard a soft _creak _come from the door. It was cracked shut, but Katara could see a small shadow underneath. She narrowed her eyes, instantly wiping the tears from her face and sliding off of her bed, quietly making her way over to the door.

She threw it open, causing Azula to jump back, staring up at the waterbender above her. Katara raised an eyebrow at the Princess. "What are you doing?" The waterbender asked, narrowing her eyes slightly.

Azula paused for a moment, before pushing herself up from the ground and sighing. "I saw you rush in here and I wanted to see if you were okay," she replied simply with the slightest bit of a shrug.

Katara felt her gaze harden. "So you were trying to see if I was okay by spying on me?" she asked, instantly feeling the anger she had buried in the pit of her stomach boil over and fill her entire body, corrupting her mind, first.

Azula cringed. "I didn't mean to be spying...I was just..."

"You know what?" Katara interrupted. "No matter how much you've convinced everyone else, I don't think you lost your memory. I think you've still got it out for us, and that you're lying through your teeth!" she hissed sharply.

Azula crossed her arms over her chest and rested a steady glare on the waterbender in front of her. "What are you talking about? You told me I was your friend! Or are _you_ the liar?" Azula asked, feeling her nose twitch.

It twitched every time she thought about Katara's stories. She still had the flashes of her family together and happy, and she had the weirdest feeling in the back of her head that she wanted to shoot Katara full of lightning.

And that feeling was suddenly getting the better of her.

Azula felt that sharp pain in her head. Her nose twitched again. Her eyes narrowed into slits, her glare like daggers pressing into Katara's chest. She grabbed Katara's wrist, pressing her back roughly and pinning her arm to the wall.

"I want you to stop acting like I'm your puppet on a little string. You are not in control of me, you _filthy peasant_," Azula tightened her grip on Katara's arm, digging her fingernails deep into Katara's flesh as Azula leaned closer. "You're lucky I didn't shoot you full of lightning," she hissed sharply.

Azula released her arm, instantly pulling her hand away as though she had touched a disease. Despite the fact that Katara's arm was free, it felt frozen to the wall as the waterbender watched the Princess stalk off with wide eyes.

Katara felt her whole body collapse as her knees gave out, her attention stuck to the firebender. She felt her hands tighten into fists, as she suddenly realized Azula was truly still evil.

**O**

Dinner could not have been more awkward.

Mainly because Azula was sitting directly across from Katara and next to Zuko, who was laughing with Toph as if he didn't realize the girl next to him was plotting to kill him. Ty Lee sat in the corner, as usual, quietly eating her dumplings.

Katara knew something was wrong with her, because she hardly ever spoke. When she did, it was soft and straight to the point. She never did cartwheels anymore, or even skip, for that matter. She seemed heavily depressed.

But the weirdest part was that she never, ever spoke to Mai.

Katara had the realization that something had happened between the three Fire Nation teens a long time ago. She had no idea what, but she did know it had to have happened right before Azula fell.

Her attention went back to Azula, whose gentle smile showed no signs of wickedness. She looked over at Katara, tilting her head slightly. "What do you think, Katara?" she asked, her eyelashes fluttering with pure happiness.

Katara forced herself not to scream at her. "About what?" she asked through her teeth. Zuko's smile faded for a moment, but he let it slide, looking back at his sister with a large smile.

"About going to see a show by the Ember Island Players next week? Zuko says that we've seen them before when we were little. Toph think they sound like a lot of fun. We're kind of dead-locked. So...what do you think?" she asked, a hint of a sadistic smirk on her face when she had mentioned '_Dead_-locked'.

Katara narrowed her eyes. "I'll pass," she muttered, before standing up, bowl in hand. "I'm gonna go feed the rest of this to Momo," she said abruptly, stalking off.

Zuko turned to his sister, narrowing his eyes. "Does she seem different to you?" he asked, raising an eyebrow. Azula looked at him, shrugging softly and turning to watch Katara walk outside quickly. Her eyes softened.

"I'm done," she said, wiping her mouth with her napkin, standing up quickly and walking up the stairs to her room.

**O**

"_Azula."_

"_Stop it. Leave me alone!"_

"_You're a liar. You're a horrible person. You're a monster!"_

"_NO!"_

"_You hurt Katara. She hates you, just like everyone else. They're using you to get ahead. They don't care about you."_

"_They helped me. I ran away, and..."_

"_And you believe that? She lied to you. You are loyal to your father. She made up everything. You don't even know who you are anymore!"_

"_I do! I'm a good person! I didn't mean to hurt Katara. I don't know what came over me! She hated me before. It's not my fault!"_

"_She hated you before, and you hated her before. You're on a mission to kill the Avatar. Zuko is your enemy. He stole your mother from you. He stole everything from you. Mai and Ty Lee betrayed you. They're just here for Zuko."_

"_...Who are you?"_

"_You don't even know who you are anymore..."_

Azula was awoken by her body flying off of her bed. She gasped, looking up at the light pouring in from her bedroom door. There was a tall silhouette in the door with an outstretch hand. The hand flinched, and Azula felt her legs forcing her to stand without her command.

**O**

The Full Moon reflected off of the beautiful ocean. About two hundred feet from the house, Azula grunted again as Katara pushed her forward. Her legs were moving, despite the fact that she was trying her hardest to stand still. Her head was throbbing horribly, and every muscle in her body was being stretched.

Katara had sworn to herself that she would never bloodbend a human being ever again. It was a horrible feeling, not to mention the fact that it was terrifying. But she had never thought that an evil murderer would be so close to them constantly.

"You thought you were a puppet on a string before..." the bloodbender hissed, forcing Azula to walk faster. She heard Azula whimper, but she forced the sound out of her head. "If you don't struggle, it'll be over before you know it," she said sympathetically, feeling her hands twitch.

Azula ignored her advice, tensing up her shoulders. "What are you doing to me?" she cried.

Katara closed her hand, which caused Azula to stop walking. The waterbender sighed, looking down at her feet. "I don't want to do this. I just can't have you hurting my friends, Azula, I'm really sorry."

"Wha-" Azula looked in front of her, staring in horror as she noticed Katara was leading her to a cliff.

"Does this seem familiar to you Azula?" she asked, pushing Azula further. Azula shook her head no quickly, feeling her chest tighten and her heart rate soar. "It shouldn't. You didn't fall here. You fell at the Western Air Temple. But you remember that, don't you?" she asked, shoving Azula to the edge.

"Please!" Azula pleaded, trying her hardest to keep her footing away from the edge. Her bare toes dangled off of the cliff, and she tried her hardest not to stare down.

Katara shut her eyes. "I'm sorry," she whispered, feeling hot tears rush down her face.

The second her hand flinched, she felt a sharp jab to her back, and she fell to the ground. As her face hit the hot sand, she heard Azula shriek, and Katara watched in horror as the firebender disappeared over the cliff edge.

**Author's Note: I just had to say this; Cliffhanger!**

_**Wanna see where all of these ideas came from? Check out the Original InspiredByFyre! Fic, Fyre's Guide to Creativity at s/6322746/1/Fyres-Guide-to-Creativity**_


	7. Chapter Six

**Author's Note: Thank you all for not reporting me for the last chapter being so creepy. I will tell you; next chapter will be creepy. I have discovered I love writing creepy stuff. I see a horror story in my future.  
So...the cliffhanger is gonna be resolved in a bit. After I blab. BLAB!  
I love driving you guys crazy. Anyways, the idea is just implied in this chapter. It's confirmed in the next. BUUUUUUT next chapter is Sozin's Comet. That came fast :O  
Anyways, enjoy!**

**Chapter Six: What if Aang never learned Energybending?**

The second her fingers left Katara's back, Ty Lee jumped forward, landing in a nose dive on the edge of the cliff. She swung her arms down over the side, and her right arm instantly caught on another hand. As she steadied her grip, she dared to peer down the side of the overhang.

Azula was clutching onto Ty Lee's hand tightly, her whole body dangling in the air. As the wind hit her side, Azula shakily looked down at the jagged rocks and high waves about a hundred feet below her. She let out a soft cry of fear, looking back up at Ty Lee with wide eyes.

Ty Lee clasped both hands around Azula's wrist, hearing the sand shift as Zuko rushed over, laying down next to the acrobat and reaching his hands over to grab Azula, as well. They both had to use every ounce of strength in their arms to pull her upwards, but after a few terrifying seconds Azula was sitting next to them, shaking horribly, but safe.

"How-how did you guys..." the Princess muttered, her tone revealing she was on the verge of tears.

Zuko put his arms around her, silencing her instantly. Ty Lee was still holding Azula's hand tightly, feeling the firebender's racing pulse on her wrist. Zuko pursed his lips softly, looking at Azula. "Ty Lee heard your bedroom door close. She went to check on you, and when she saw you weren't in there, she came to tell me."

Azula turned to look at Ty Lee and took a deep breath to steady herself. "Thank you," she said softly, wrapping her arms around her best friend. Ty Lee her arm around Azula, as well, hugging her tightly.

"I'm glad you're okay," the acrobat said slowly, pulling back so Azula could see she had the slightest bit of a smile on her face.

Zuko forced a smile onto his face, as well. "Let's get you inside," he said, holding her hand as he stood. Despite the fact that her knees were constantly hitting each other, the firebender forced herself to her feet and quickly pulled herself closely up against her brother.

**O**

It had taken ten minutes for Katara to be able to move again. After that, she had laid in the sand for ten more minutes, looking at the ledge and biting her lip until it bled.

How could she have done this? Sozin's Comet was a week away, and now, all of her friends thought she was some sort of crazy murderer. The worst part was, Katara had heard the honesty and fear in Azula's voice. Princess Azula would have been able to use a jet of fire to propel herself to safety. The Azula she had almost killed was scared to death.

She had almost killed an innocent human being.

She sat up sluggishly, rubbing her face and letting out a deep sigh. She pushed herself up to her feet, feeling her shoulders slouch and her chest tighten. Her vision was blurred with tears, but she could make out the house in the distance. It was lit up with lanterns and candles, despite the fact that it was the middle of the night.

Although she wanted to run away and scream at herself, the bloodbender began to trudge unhurriedly toward the house. She blew the hair out of her face, knowing that she would be ridiculed the second she stepped in the door. Currently, she was so tired she hardly cared.

As she stepped onto the porch, she lowered her gaze to the ground. She couldn't stand the looks of pure hatred that she knew she would receive. However, as she opened the door, only Aang even looked over at her.

Katara made her way over to the corner of the room Ty Lee seemed to claim. Ty Lee was not there, instead sitting next to Azula on the couch. The firebender had a blanket over her shoulders, which seemed to comfort her. Her head was on her brother's shoulder, and she was still shaking horribly.

She was really and truly terrified.

Mai walked into the room from the kitchen, a small kettle and cup in her hand. She sat next to Ty Lee, handing the cup over to Azula. "I made you some tea. You need to drink something," the assassin said, her voice hardly louder than a whisper. Mai looked over at Ty Lee. "I'm glad your hearing is better than mine," She said with a smile.

Ty Lee shut her eyes, before standing up and walking over to the staircase, making her way up sluggishly. Mai narrowed her eyes, before standing up and following her friend.

"Ty?" Mai asked as she walked up the top stair. Ty Lee reluctantly stopped, turning around to face the assassin. "Are you mad at me about something?" she asked her friend, tilting her head. Ty Lee shrugged simply. "Ty, talk to me! Ever since Azula got hurt you've been acting like you hate me. You never smile anymore, and you act more depressed than...than me!" Mai said, throwing her hands up. "I just want to know why," she concluded with a sigh.

Ty Lee shut her eyes for a moment, before turning to look at Mai. "When we were at Boiling Rock, Azula was about to attack you, so I struck her down. But...I saw you, Mai. After Azula was down, you were about to attack her. You were ready to throw a knife into her. You wanted something horrible to happen to her. And then it did, and it still is.

"Azula only has us and Zuko. She and Zuko fight all the time, and you were ready to kill her. She doesn't trust any of the others. She needs someone she can trust, and she thinks that you're that person. But the truth is, you're not. I still want to be your friend, Mai, but you have to be Azula's friend, first, because she needs you more than I need you."

Mai was taken aback for a moment. She pressed her lips together, before looking into Ty Lee's grey eyes. "I didn't want to hurt her. I was just protecting Zuko," the assassin said, looking down at her bare feet.

Ty Lee bit her lip. "Azula thinks you would never do anything to her. She put all of her trust in us, and that's deteriorating faster every day. Katara tried to kill her tonight, Mai! She doesn't know who she can trust, who's tried to hurt her, or even who she is. You have to tell her."

"But what am I supposed to tell her? 'Oh, I tried to kill you the day before you got amnesia. Sorry about that!'? She'd never trust me again!" Mai said, her body sinking with each word. She knew Ty Lee was right, but she didn't know what to do about it.

Ty Lee shut her eyes. "Then I want you to promise me something; as soon as Azula gets her memory back, I want you to tell her the truth. She deserves to know. And when you apologize, then Azula can decide it she trusts you anymore. We're her only friends. She needs us, but she _needs us_ to be honest with her." She paused for a moment, before looking over at her friend. "She'd really appreciate it."

Mai pursed her lips before looking up. "Okay. I'll tell her. But...you have to go back to being happy Ty Lee if I do, okay?"

Ty Lee smiled, jumping over to hug Mai. Their happy moment was interrupted by a sharp scream from downstairs. Two heads instantly turned to look as Suki clasped both of her hands over her mouth. "What happened?" Mai shouted down.

Suki grabbed Azula's hand, holding it up in an attempt to show it to Azula's friends. They could hardly see anything except the fact that it was crimson colored.

Ty Lee's eyes widened as she jumped down the stairs, running over to Azula. Looking at the girl's hand, Ty Lee saw a large cut across her palm. Ty Lee grabbed a cloth and began to wipe away the thick red liquid to see the cut better. "She must have cut it on the top of the cliff," she said, looking over at Mai. Mai rushed into the kitchen to grab a bucket of water.

From the corner, Katara's voice was hardly audible. "I-I could try to help her..." she began slowly, beginning to stand.

Zuko instantly turned to glare at her. "I think we've had enough of you trying to help people," he hissed, grabbing a cloth and dipping it in the water as he rubbed Azula's injured hand. Katara put her head in her hands, feeling tears rush down her face. She ran up the stairs to her room, feeling her whole body rack with sobs.

"Well that was a bit mean," Mai said softly, grabbing a strip of gauze to wrap Azula's hand with. Zuko shrugged, wiping the wound again nonchalantly. Mai rolled her eyes at her boyfriend, before sitting in front of Azula and wrapping her hand.

Azula looked up the stairs in the direction that Katara had disappeared. "Is she okay?" Azula asked slowly. Her question was disregarded as Zuko continued to wipe Azula's bleeding hand. The Princess sighed softly, looking down, realizing that it was a stupid question to ask.

**O**

_Two Days to Sozin's Comet._

The thought continually rang in Aang's head. The young Avatar felt his chest tighten as he ate, trying not to think about how in just two days, he was expected to kill Zuko and Azula's father. He didn't want to kill anyone, but everyone was constantly telling him he had no other choice. The hardest part was trying not to let Azula know anything. Between her injuries, the fact that Katara had tried to kill her, and the fact that Aang was well aware that she hardly slept, Azula was starting to go crazy. She normally sat next to Zuko, trying not to say anything, and just listening constantly.

Aang looked over at her and flashed a smile, attempting to make her feel better. She looked up at him with wide eyes, muttering 'Hmm?' as if she thought he had asked her a question. He shook his head, letting out a soft sigh and throwing another piece of meat in his mouth. The room felt empty for some reason, despite the fact that only one person was missing.

_Katara._

She never came out of her room anymore. She had locked herself in there like she was punishing herself, refusing to ever talk to anyone. Aang could tell she felt awful about everything that had happened, but he could also tell Azula didn't care about it anymore. In fact, she had never seen mad about it at all.

Aang looked up towards Katara's room, before grabbing his bowl. "I'm gonna finish this outside," he said, standing up and walking toward the back door. He swung the door open, shutting it silently behind him and sitting on the porch. He shut his eyes, crossing his legs and putting his hands together.

He must have meditated longer than he thought, because when he was shaken to reality, the moon had shifted positions. He looked in his lap and smiled at his small lemur, who was chirping happily. "Hey, Momo! Who let you out?" he asked, turning around to face the door.

Despite the fact that she was backlit, Aang could easily tell it was Azula in the doorway. He smiled at her, motioning for her to sit next to him. As she plopped down, she looked over at him. "What are you doing out here?"

"Thinking," Aang responded, looking out over the ocean.

Azula rolled her eyes. "Okay, I get enough one-word answers from Zuko. I would like a little more detail, please," she said with a soft smirk. Aang chuckled for a moment, before pressing his lips together firmly and taking a deep breath.

"I'm just wondering what to do about your fa-Ozai," he corrected himself quickly.

Azula crossed her arms over her chest, looking at Aang skeptically. "I know Ozai is my father, and I know you're supposed to kill him in a couple of days. But...he's evil, right? So doesn't he deserve it?" she asked, raising an eyebrow.

Aang took a deep breath. "Yeah, I guess so. But I also know that some people may appear to be evil, but they're really nice if you give them a chance." He smiled over at Azula, who smirked softly. "I guess you know a lot more than we thought you did."

"I guess I kind of figured some of it out, too..." she trailed off, thinking of the dreams she had been having recently. Despite the fact they were horrible nightmares, when she woke up each morning, she knew a little more about the truth. She was dying to know it all.

Aang frowned, looking out at the ocean. "I just don't want to kill anyone. No matter how evil a person is, they don't deserve to have their life cut short," he said, trying not to look over at the girl next to him.

She could tell he was talking about her, however, so on that note, she stood and walked back inside, not bothering to tell him 'Goodnight'. Aang sighed, grabbing his lemur and looking out over the clear ocean. Petting Momo's ears, he walked inside, as well, never looking back.

**O**

The next night was hectic. As the group packed up all their stuff to camp out for a night before Sozin's Comet, Azula stayed close to Zuko. Since she didn't have much of anything to pack, she was 'helping' him, which meant following him in every step he took.

Zuko would never tell Azula this, but he was trying his hardest to get away from Azula. He loved her dearly, but he needed to talk to Aang and the others about a plan or tomorrow. She couldn't know about any of it.

As he threw his stuff onto Appa, he asked her to go grab Momo while he went to help Aang with his stuff. She seemed disappointed at first, but unenthusiastically went to go find the lemur. As soon as she left, Zuko ran to go find the others inside. They were all in the Living Room, sitting around a small map Sokka had of the Earth Kingdom.

"...they'll probably start the attack here," he said, pointing to a point on the map as Zuko came over to sit down. Sokka looked up at the other boy and smiled at him. "You got rid of the other half?" he asked with a large smile.

Zuko chuckled, looking at the map. "She just doesn't want to be alone. She's been like that since she was little. I guess the real Azula's trying to peek through, huh?" he asked, with a smirk. Katara nodded softly from the other side of the human circle, nervously pulling on her hair.

"So the plan is pretty simple," Sokka said, pulling out another map. "Katara, Toph, and Zuko come from here," he said, pointing at the map. "Mai, Ty Lee, Suki and I come from here, and after we get rid of any defense, Aang come around from the back, and BAM!" Sokka threw his arms up for emphasis.

"Bam?" Mai asked, raising a skeptical eyebrow. Sokka shrugged, folding up his maps and stuffing them in his bag.

Zuko put a hand up to stop Sokka. "Wait...what about Azula?" he asked, looking over at the Water Tribe boy.

Sokka shrugged. "We just need to keep her as out of this as possible. The less she knows, the better," he said simply, standing up. "And besides, when she gets there, she might start putting the pieces together, and that could end badly for us."

Azula, from her place ducked down at the top of the staircase, gasped silently, her eyes wide as she stared down at the group. She narrowed her eyes sharply, before standing up and yelling "Momo! Stop it!"

The lemur, laying calmly in her arms, looked up at her skeptically. The teenagers below all looked up at her, quickly acting like nothing had happened. She smiled as the lemur jumped from her arm, gliding down to Aang. As soon as the lemur landed, he turned around and hissed at Azula, who laughed as she jumped down the stairs.

Zuko smiled at her. "Ready to go?"

"Oh, I'm ready, alright," she said, feeling a sadistic smirk crawl its way onto her face.

**O**

"_The less she knows, the better."_

"_You hurt Katara. She hates you, just like everyone else. They're using you to get ahead. They don't care about you."_

"_You fell at the Western Air Temple. But you remember that, don't you?"_

"_And you believe that? She lied to you. You are loyal to your father. She made up everything. You don't even know who you are anymore!"_

Azula almost screamed when she awoke. The sweat on her forehead was all stuck to her bandaging, which made it sting horribly. Her hand was bleeding again, but she ignored it, sitting up slowly and creeping out of her tent. Everyone else was fast asleep, so Azula wasn't detected by anyone as she made her way over to another tent.

She pushed the door open and shook the figure inside awake. Her big blue eyes opened groggily as she awoke, letting out a loud yawn. As she came to, she looked up at the figure looming over her. "Azula?" the waterbender asked.

"I want you to tell me everything," Azula demanded, sitting down and crossing her arms. "The truth, this time."

_**Wanna see where all of these ideas came from? Check out the Original InspiredByFyre! Fic, Fyre's Guide to Creativity at s/6322746/1/Fyres-Guide-to-Creativity**_


End file.
